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General Tabletop Discussion
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My biggest gripe with 5e design
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<blockquote data-quote="5ekyu" data-source="post: 7853127" data-attributes="member: 6919838"><p>First thought, why? As in "why are we fighting? If the reason for the PCs to do things is driven primarily by survival - then yeah - not dying is key. But then, why fight vs run? So the first thing yo do to change the outlook and prep style is changing the context of the scenario. Conditions, effects, 24 hour delays etc etc can have extremely dramatic impact and meaning if they hit the bigger goals. </p><p></p><p>Second, if you want the fights to be (even within the context of "the fight") less about the HP, use scenes, monsters and events more often where the HP is not the main thing. Use more intelligent monsters /adversaries where terrain choices, traps, planning on the adversary part then makes prrp and research and do on vital for PCs too. </p><p></p><p>"Releasevthe basilisk" might be underwhelming as a straight up corridor encounter in your dungeon. But if the boss put that basilisk in a pen and setup a way to drop an isolated pc into that pen, especially not a high con bruiser - that basilisk is now much more dsngerous.</p><p></p><p>In my experience, in my gameplay, I kind of view encounters that are meant to be risks and key differently than those where, frankly, its might gonna be a fight but it's not the fight that matters - but just dressing for whatever comes from it. </p><p></p><p>Perhaps that to me is a difference - in GM styles. I am more interested in presenting serious risk in "encounters that matter" where its combos of things and cunning all together that add up to risk. I am much more interested in leaving simpler beasts and sacks of HP as more akin to terrain or trap than "lethal risks" if engaged. Is the real risk for the sack of HP that the fight will expose your position to others? Are they out in the hills by sn intelligent adversary to specifically harass and reveal approaching threats?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="5ekyu, post: 7853127, member: 6919838"] First thought, why? As in "why are we fighting? If the reason for the PCs to do things is driven primarily by survival - then yeah - not dying is key. But then, why fight vs run? So the first thing yo do to change the outlook and prep style is changing the context of the scenario. Conditions, effects, 24 hour delays etc etc can have extremely dramatic impact and meaning if they hit the bigger goals. Second, if you want the fights to be (even within the context of "the fight") less about the HP, use scenes, monsters and events more often where the HP is not the main thing. Use more intelligent monsters /adversaries where terrain choices, traps, planning on the adversary part then makes prrp and research and do on vital for PCs too. "Releasevthe basilisk" might be underwhelming as a straight up corridor encounter in your dungeon. But if the boss put that basilisk in a pen and setup a way to drop an isolated pc into that pen, especially not a high con bruiser - that basilisk is now much more dsngerous. In my experience, in my gameplay, I kind of view encounters that are meant to be risks and key differently than those where, frankly, its might gonna be a fight but it's not the fight that matters - but just dressing for whatever comes from it. Perhaps that to me is a difference - in GM styles. I am more interested in presenting serious risk in "encounters that matter" where its combos of things and cunning all together that add up to risk. I am much more interested in leaving simpler beasts and sacks of HP as more akin to terrain or trap than "lethal risks" if engaged. Is the real risk for the sack of HP that the fight will expose your position to others? Are they out in the hills by sn intelligent adversary to specifically harass and reveal approaching threats? [/QUOTE]
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